Meter-seal



(No Model.) H. RINGfNESS.

METER SEAL. No. 578,775. 7 Patented Mlanjl, 1897.

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UNITED STATESV PATnNT Carien.

HENRY RIN GN ESS, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

METER-SEAL.

i SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters' Patent No. 578,775, dated March 16, 1897.

Application filed April 8, 1895. Serial No. 544.888. (No model.)

To all whom, t may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY RINGNESS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Peoria, in the county of Peoria and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Meter-Seals; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to certain new and vuseful improvements in meter-seals, by means of which a simple, cheap, and efficient seal is provided well adapted for the purpose designed.

The object of my invention is to provide a seal that may be adapted for the purpose in connection with any of the various kinds of meters used for water, gas, &c., thatwill simplify the methods heretofore adopted for the purpose and do away with the necessity of applyingr a number of seals to the various separable parts of a meter, and to substitute a single seal that will etfectually protect the meter from attempts to interfere with its legitimate and proper registration.

My invention consists, essentially, of an inclosing case for meters, consisting of sections provided with suitable openings therein to adapt it to the particular kind of meter in which it may be used, that is, I provide in connection with the case the necessary openings for the admission of pipes leading to and from the meter and also for a sight-opening over the registering-dial, each section provided with an outwardly-bearing flange having a series of perforations and a tie laced through the perforations to hold the sections together.

That my invention may be more fully understood, reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a plan view of my device which I use for sealing meters. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same, and Fig. 3 is a section of the same through the line y y of Fig. l.

In the figures, A is a top section of my inclosing case, the same being provided with a sight-opening B at the top portion thereof, the same being provided with the projecting rim a at the bottom portion thereof, the same being perforated at intervals throughout its circumferential bearing with relation to said section A, and b is a depending lip slightly deflected inwardly from the body of the section A.

C is a lower section of the said case, the

same being made in form to correspond circumferentially with the upper section and to match therewith in such a manner that the upper edge thereof will engage the lips b of section A, as shown in Fig. 3. l

c` is a flange extending outwardly from the upper edge of the said section, matching with the flange a above, and designed for a bearing relation in connection therewith, the said flange being provided with perforations to match the perforations in ange a above.

d is a wire designed to be passed through the several matching perforations and to be carried alternately over and under the combined iianges and the ends thereof to be twisted together, as at e, the manner of the carry` ing of the said wire and of sealing the ends of the same being best shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

f is an openin g in the side of the case, there being a corresponding openingat another portion of the said case or as many openings as may be desired, according to the application of the device, for the admission of pipes to and from the inclosed meter in substantially the manner shown in the drawings.

h is an opening in the bottom of the case, which is provided for the escape of water that might be present within the case, occasioned by leakage from the water-meter in connection with which it might be used or from the joints therein.

I do not seek to claim in this device its application in connection with any particular kind or character of meter, but state that it may be applied to any of the various kinds in use, whether for water, gas, or other substances; but I do wish to claim, broadly, the use of an exterior housing or case as applied to a meter in such a way as to cover all the joints thereof and therewith, substantially as shown in the drawings, so that none of the part-s of the meter proper nor the pipes leading thereto may be disconnected and the natural functions of the meter circumvented IOO Without discoveryl of such tampering therewith, thus providing ka perfect, simple1 and eiective seal.

I do not desire to limit myself in this application to the exact construction and form of case herein shown and described, but desire to cover, broadly, an exterior housing or case for meters that may be constructed in such a manner as to be easily and simply sealed at a single point, nor do I Wish to conline myself to the use of any particular kind of material, as any suitable material for the purpose may be used.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a meter-seal, the combination of sections A and C, each' provided With an out- Wardly-bearing flange having a series of perforations and the tie d, laced through the perfor-ations to hold the sections together and a seal for securing the ends of the lace together, all substantially as described and shown. Y

2. In a meter-seal consistingvof the casing composed of sections A and C, section A pro` vided With a sight-opening B, section C having the small outlet-opening fn, and openings as f, for the admission of pipes leading to and from the meter, section A having the depending flange b, for iitting in the top of section C, and the outwardly-bearing flange a, provided With a series of perforations, and section C also provided with the outwardly-bearing ange c, provided With a series of perforations matching the perforations in liange a, of the section A and the tie d, laced through the perforations in the lianges and the ends thereof secured together as at e, and properly sealed, all substantially as described and shown.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY RINGNESS.

Witnesses:

CHAs. W. LA PORTE, N. A. WooDsoN. 

